Set user options for the current database

To customize user settings, such as how object windows display, keyboard shortcuts, and automatic correction options for an Access desktop database that is currently open, click File > Options, and change the options in the Current Database category.

Note: Unless otherwise noted, setting changes are applied only after you close and reopen the database.

Note: This article doesn’t apply to Access web apps – the kind of database you design with Access and publish online.

Customize options for your current database

You can quickly customize how the application name and logo are displayed, how object windows are displayed, and how files are managed for your current application or database. From a database that is currently open:

Select settings for how object windows appear

Access includes an option to display all the open objects in a series of easy-to-reach tabs along the top of the object window. You can set the following display options from the Document Window Options area in the Current Database category.

Setting

Description

Overlapping Windows

When selected, multiple open objects are displayed overlapping one over the other.

Tabbed Documents

When selected, only one object is visible at a time even if multiple objects are open.

You can use the Tabbed Document setting without having the document tabs displayed, which is helpful when users need to work with one object at a time. If you clear this option, be sure to include another navigation option to allow users to switch to different objects.

Display Document Tabs

If you select the Tabbed Documents option, you can also select this option to display tabs for all open objects.

Use Windows-themed Controls on Forms

When selected, uses your Windows theme on the controls of forms and reports in the current database.

Enable Layout View

When selected, shows the Layout View button on the Access status bar and in the shortcut menus that appear when you right-click an object tab. If you clear this option, the user can’t open the forms and reports in the Layout view.

Note: After you clear this option, Layout View is not available from the Views group or any of the shortcut menus.

Enable design changes for tables in Datasheet view

When selected, lets you change the design of tables from the Datasheet view.

Check for truncated number fields

When selected, Access displays numbers as "#####" when a column is too narrow to display the entire value. If the option is not selected, the values visible in a column are truncated based on what can fit in the column.

Picture Property Storage Format

When selected, Access stores images in their original format. Select this option to reduce database size.

Convert all picture data into bitmaps (compatible with Access 2003 and earlier)

When selected, Access creates a copy of the original image file in either the Windows Bitmap or Device Independent Bitmap formats. Select this option to view images in databases created in Office Access 2003 and earlier versions.

Select navigation options for your current database

You can customize the navigation for your current application from these options:

Setting

Description

Display Navigation Pane

If you clear this option, the Navigation Pane will not be displayed when the current database is opened.

Navigation Options

When selected, you can change the categories and groups that appear in the Navigation Pane and set options for how objects open in the current database.

Ribbon Name

Select a name for a custom ribbon group.

Shortcut Menu Bar

Set or change the default menu bar for shortcut menus.

Allow Full Menus

If you clear this check box, only Home is visible on the ribbon. In addition, the Save and Save As commands are not available when you click File.

Allow Default Shortcut Menus

Turns on or off the shortcut (pop-up) menus that appear when you right-click a database object in the Navigation Pane or a control on a form or report. You must close and reopen the current database for the specified option to take effect.

Set options to track and correct field names in your current database

The Name AutoCorrect option asks Access to track and correct field name reference in forms, reports, and queries. You can set the following options for your current database:

Setting

Description

Track name AutoCorrect info

When selected, Access stores the information needed to correct naming errors. Allows you to use the Object Dependencies feature. However, Access does not repair errors until you select the Perform name AutoCorrect option.

Perform name AutoCorrect

When selected, Access repairs naming errors as they occur. If you select the Track name AutoCorrect info option and leave this option blank, Access stores any error data until you select this option.

Log name AutoCorrect changes

Access logs the changes it makes to a database when it repairs name errors and saves the data in a table named AutoCorrect.log.

Set filter options for your current database

You can sort the information displayed in a form by defining a filter using Filter by Form definition and select display values for the Filter by Form window for a current database.

The options in this section control several features such as the size of the value lists that appear for a given field in the Filter by Form window. You can select options for whether a user can display values for indexed or non-indexed fields and for a linked table in an external file. You can also select options for whether value lists appear in the controls in a form when the Filter by Form is used.

Setting

Description

Local indexed fields

When selected, displays values from local indexed fields in the value lists that appear in the Filter by Form window.

Local nonindexed fields

Includes values from local nonindexed fields in the value lists that appear in the Filter by Form window.

ODBC fields

Includes values from tables to which you link by using an Open Database Connectivity connection.

Don't display lists where more than this number of records read

Enter the maximum number of records that you want Access to read while it builds the value list for Filter by Form operations. A value list will not appear if the number of records required to complete a list exceeds the number you specify. All values lists contain only unique values, even if their fields are not indexed. The default is 1000.

Setting Caching Web Service and SharePoint tables option

The default setting for new databases in Access 2010 and higher is to cache web service and SharePoint linked tables.

Use the cache format that is compatible with Microsoft Access 2010 and later Select this option to have Access cache a local copy of linked data. This setting can improve performance while working with linked data. Loading and viewing of linked data will be quicker using this option. Clear this option if you want to use the caching behavior that existed in Access 2007.

Clear cache on close Select this option to have Access clear any local cached data from memory when you close your database.

Never cache Select this option to not have Access cache a local copy of data while working with your linked SharePoint data sources.

Note: The Clear cache on close and Never cache options are not available if you clear the Use the cache format that is compatible with Microsoft Access 2010 and later setting.

Enable Large Number data type support for linking and importing

The Large Number data type stores a non-monetary, numeric value and is compatible with the SQL_BIGINT data type in ODBC. This data type efficiently calculates large numbers and has a range of -2^63 to 2^63-1.

When selected, enables Large Number data type support for linking to or importing from external databases that use an equivalent data type, such as bigint in SQL Server. Access ? warns you that setting this option makes a permanent change to the database file format that has backward compatibility considerations. Do one of the following:

Select OK to make the change permanent. Once you make the change, you cannot reverse it.

Note: When you enable this option, you can use the Large Number data type to link and import before closing the database. However, you must close and open the database to see the change to the file format stamp in the database title bar.